Drug trade rife in detention centres

Prescription drugs are being traded among asylum seekers who are becoming addicted to sedatives, sleeping pills and powerful painkillers inside Australia's immigration detention centres, the ABC has been told.

Recently released asylum seekers say misuse of addictive drugs is rife, with a thriving black market trade in pills which are handed out to combat stress and insomnia among detainees who are waiting to hear if their asylum requests will be granted.

One refugee who spent nearly two years in detention says the pills, handed out by medical authorities inside detention centres, make detainees "like robots" and leave them with drug problems which need more treatment if and when they are released into the community.

Afghan refugee Habibullah was granted asylum two months ago after 15 months in detention on Christmas Island and at Curtin.

The 28-year-old father of two says asylum seekers are becoming addicted to prescribed medication and redistributing the drugs among themselves.

"When somebody goes to the doctors they give them medicine; they often become addicted to that medicine and get more medicine and take it and give it to their friend," Habibullah said.

"They get a tablet and after taking it for a number of months, it will not work so well and they have to use a stronger tablet.

Habibullah says the stress and the uncertainty of their situations is why so many asylum seekers require ongoing medication.

"I try not to use medicine unless I have to. Sometimes, though, I couldn't sleep," he said.

When somebody goes to the doctors they give them medicine; they often become addicted to that medicine and get more medicine and take it and give it to their friend.

Afghan refugee Habibullah

"Thinking about my family and what will happen to me. It is very stressful. Nobody knows what will happen. Immigration does not specify an exact time, when you will get your answer. Ten months? Thirteen months? You are under a lot of stress. What will happen to me?

"Because of this, some of my friends used to get the medication because they couldn't sleep at night.

"They can show their paper to a nurse and get medicine. They use it themselves or they give it to their friends.

"After a while, they have to continue using that tablet."

'Like robots'

Sri Lankan refugee Ramanan Balasundarum spent almost two years in detention and became addicted to sleeping pills. He believes many detainees become dependent on drugs in detention centres and then burden Australia’s health system.

"Those sleeping tablets they would give us made us function like robots," Mr Balasundarum told the ABC News Online Investigative Unit.

"They would give us sleeping tablets at night, which would make us go to bed and we would wake up in the day, and the cycle continued.

"We came out of detention as people who are not fully well in health and we are still a burden on Australia and the Australian people."

Official figures on the extent of the problem are expected to be released in the next fortnight after a federal parliamentary inquiry asked International Health and Medical Services (IHMS), which provides health services in detention centres, to investigate.

The chairwoman of the Federal Government's Detention Health Advisory Group, psychiatrist Louise Newman, says she is concerned about the alleged trade in prescription drugs.

"We are hearing about the trade in painkillers - oxycodone," Professor Newman said.

"A lot of detainees are so stressed and they all have insomnia; many of them go to the medical centre requesting sedatives.

"It's a concern that there are allegations of a bit of a trade going on in sedative medication and also painkillers."

In a statement to the ABC, IHMS said: "The medication management policy of International Health and Medical Services is derived from the Australian Immigration Detention Health Framework, underpinned by relevant state and territory therapeutics, drugs and poisons legislation, revised in consultation with the Detention Health Advisory Group and referenced against the RACGP [Royal Australian College of General Practitioners] standards for health care in immigration detention centres.

"Enshrined within these policies are principles of patient autonomy and shared responsibility with respect to choices regarding medical treatment.

"In essence, medication management for people in immigration detention is consistent with that for people in the general Australian community. Medications are prescribed by a medical practitioner such as a GP and dispensed from a community pharmacy.

"In some cases, when it is clinically indicated, there is a greater degree of onsite monitoring by IHMS staff in conjunction with the detention service provider."

There are allegations of drugs provisions for people who are agitated or who are acting badly - as opposed to being ill. That would be the concern.

psychiatrist and government advisor Louise Newman

Agitated detainees

Professor Newman is worried about the inappropriate use of medication, a high rate of usage when it is unlikely to be effective, as well as the routine use of medication for stress and insomnia in Australia's detention centres.

"I think we have to be very careful about how we approach it as an issue," she said.

"There are allegations of drugs provisions for people who are agitated or who are acting badly - as opposed to being ill. That would be the concern.

"Certainly after the riots and the problems that some of the centres have had, concerns were raised then about whether people who were agitated and likely to act out - difficult people so to speak - were actually prescribed medication.

"The issue is too, whether it is against their will or not.

"Many of these people are depressed and suffering from quite severe mental health problems and for some of them, medication is the appropriate treatment."